- Live Blog: We’re going to be live blogging everyday and filing some reports from the festival itself. The live blog post will stay on the front page for the entire day, only to be moved down the next morning for live blog Day 2 and then Day 3. We’ll try our damnedest to update the entire live blog with all coverage from all our on-site contributors by 12 pm the next morning at the latest. If things go according to plan the live blog won’t just be our thoughts, but photo and video as well. (Maybe even some Spoken Tweets? We’ll see!)

- Tweeting: Yes, we’ll be tweeting from the festival. Make sure to keep your eyes peeled on our official account @loudlooppress. Not only will we be giving our thoughts live from the field and RT-ing pertinent info, we’ll try and tweet out some audio and video as well. Be sure to follow our staff who will be there:

Richard Giraldi – @rgiraldi
Andrew Kahn – @andykahn
Audrey Leon – @audreyleon
Ross Meyerson (If he can get that doggone thing to work!) – @bengrieve

- Festival Preview: The insanity will kick off bright and early tomorrow morning when we post our comprehensive preview of bands we think you should definitely check out this weekend. You’re probably familiar with Pavement and LCD Soundsystem, so we’re sticking with lesser known and local acts. I’m sure you saw our comedy stage preview yesterday. It will be like that, only more musical.

So, that’s it for now. Remember if you want to find our coverage, but are lost in the madness, simply hit that icon at the top of the page labeled “Pitchfork Music Festival 2010 Coverage”. It should take you to all posts tagged with “Pitchfork Music Festival”. Are you ready Chicago? We certainly are.

We’re down to the final two Top 10 Albums from 2000-2009 lists! Today, contributor Audrey Leon rocks our faces off with her list for the Top 10 Albums from 2000 – 2009.

10. Idlewild – 100 Broken Windows
If there is one thing the Scottish band Idlewild knows how to do, it is start things off with a bang. Idlewild roared into the new decade with its sophomore effort 100 Broken Windows. They continued this legacy with its follow-up The Remote Part. What made 100 Broken Windows so special was a weird blend of seemingly innocuous, yet silently ferocious rock mixed with the vocals of a Scottish Michael Stipe impersonator. Take album opener “Little Discourage.” It begins plainly enough, slowly running up and down the neck of the guitar but then it launches into pure rock distortion while frontman Roddy Woomble proclaims “All I need is a little discourage.”

9. Sloan – Parallel Play
Canadian pop rockers Sloan returned in 2008 with their ninth studio album, Parallel Play. The album is full of sugary, toe-tapping rock standards such as “Cheap Champagne,” “Burn For It” and “I’m not a Kid Anymore.” Parallel Play is sure to have fans and new converts alike singing along in unison. Parallel Play fits in beautifully with an already incredible arsenal of pop rock hits such as “Underwhelmed” from 1992’s Smeared, “Coax Me” from 1994’s Twice Removed and “Money City Maniacs” from 1998’s Navy Blues.

8. Sleater-Kinney – The Woods
The Woods is Sleater-Kinney’s last album before sailing off into the abyss of the “indefinite hiatus” vortex in 2005. The Woods offers up a more mature-sounding Sleater-Kinney. The songs are infused with the spirit of the classic rock ancestors that came before them with plenty of reverb and distortion to match. While S-K appears older and wiser on The Woods, make no mistake they are just as angry. No where is that more obvious than on its first single, the hard-rocker “Entertain” and the album’s magnum opus is the 11-minute “Let’s Call It Love.”

7. Les Savy Fav – Let’s Stay Friends
All good things come to those who wait. While it took six years for Les Savy Fav to release a follow-up to 2001’s Go Forth, LSF fans were rewarded with the band’s best album to date. Let’s Stay Friends features plenty of guests from the indie rock world including appearances by Saturday Night Live funnyman and former Trenchmouth drummer Fred Armisen, Enon vocalist Toko Yasuda, Fiery Furnaces vocalist Eleanor Friedberger and Metric frontwoman Emily Haines. LSF’s powerhouse frontman Tim Harrington’s wildman bravado translates to record and moves the listener to his persuasive rhythms. I dare you not to jump out of your chair and shimmy as “Patty Lee” and/or “The Lowest Bitter” pumps out of your stereo.

6. Broken Social Scene – You Forgot It in People
Broken Social Scene is massive. Literally. To date, nineteen Toronto-based musicians claim membership in BSS’s traveling circus in addition to their own projects. You may know them as members of Metric, the Apostle of Hustle, Do Make Say Think, Stars and – who could forget – Feist. Under the direction of master of ceremonies Kevin Drew and lion tamer Brendan Canning, You Forgot It In People delights and impresses the audience with masterful feats of musicianship by seamlessly blending lush orchestrations, atmospheric noise, powerpop, jazz, punk, you name it. There’s really only one word to describe the song “KC Accidental,” epic. Of course, if You Forgot It in People only contained one track, namely the Dinosaur Jr.-esque “Cause=Time,” it would still be on this list. Drew says all I need to know on this song: “This is the blood I love to share.”

5. Elliott Smith – From a Basement on the Hill
Released after Elliott Smith’s death in 2003, From a Basement on the Hill reflects Smith’s struggles with his demanding inner demons. The bittersweet, no-frills record was compiled by producer Rob Schnapf and ex-girlfriend and Quasi/Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks bassist Joanna Bolme. One can’t listen to From a Basement on the Hill without being saddened by the loss of a gifted composer and without feeling the same secret pain contained within when Smith created these songs. Each track on From a Basement on the Hill is tragic and beautiful. Album opener “Coast to Coast” provides Smith’s mission statement for From A Basement on the Hill (“I’ve got no new act to amuse you / I’ve got no desire to use you”) and possibly foreshadows the event to come. Smith’s vocals on “Little One” are especially haunting as they preside over an otherwise calm, Beatles-esque tune.

4. Spoon – Gimme Fiction
As tempting as it is to pull an Andy Kondrat and place the entire Spoon canon within the confines of this top ten list, I won’t; it’s been done. You could pick any album Kill the Moonlight and Girls Can Tell, Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga and find any number of songs to groove to at a dance party (“All the Pretty Girls Go to the City,” “Everything Hits at Once,” “Don’t You Evah”) – which I may some day hold – but I chose Gimme Fiction because every time I hear “I Turn My Camera On” I see Spoon frontman Britt Daniel wearing Prince’s assless yellow pants humping the floor with each pulsing beat. The fact that Daniel doesn’t do this live is purely ridiculous, but I digress.

3. Local H – 12 Angry Months
Local H frontman Scott Lucas is the last angry man. On 2004‘s Whatever Happened to PJ Soles Lucas proclaimed “you wouldn’t like me when I’m angry,” but if history has taught us anything, that is when Lucas shines best. 2008’s 12 Angry Months follows Lucas as he vows to write a song each month of the year. The album succeeds in providing fans with plenty of reasons to bang their heads with riff-heavy tracks “The One With ‘Kid’” and “Blur.” The album also serves as a precursor to Lucas’ own side project the Married Men with the mellower offerings “Simple Pleas” and “Hand to Mouth.” More than just a break-up record, 12 Angry Months sees Local H experimenting with a fuller sound by adding more guitars and even keyboard (“Machine Shed Wresting”). From beginning to end 12 Angry Months doesn’t disappoint.

2. Queens of the Stone Age – Songs for the Deaf
Before the release of Songs for the Deaf in 2002, Queens of the Stone Age were virtually unknown by mainstream rock fans even after releasing two albums of exceptional hard rock material. With former Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl manning the drum kit, Queens of the Stone Age blew the door right the mainstream with hip-shaking, dirty rock tracks like “Go With the Flow” and “Song for the Dead” and hit pay dirt with lead single “No One Knows” plastered all over MTV and Fuse. What made Songs for the Deaf so successful beside Grohl’s name-recognition, was guitarist Josh Homme’s sultry vocals and unbelievable guitar prowess; the bluesy solo Homme executes during the break in the Mark Lanegan-helmed “God is in the Radio” is the ultimate perfection. Last but not least, where would we be as a society without bassist Nick Oliveri’s powerful bass lines and head-rattling screams?

1. At The Drive-In – Relationship of Command
At The Drive-In’s existence was short but sweet, much like like a shooting star or meteor shower and just as raw and energetic. Since its inception in the mid-1990s, ATD-I released three studio albums and a handful of EPs full of rich, screamy, kitchen-sink punk rock songs that heavily influenced countless Emo and Hardcore bands. The El Paso, Texas band’s final album, 2000’s Relationship of Command, opens with the menacing, tribal drum rhythms of “Arcasrenal” (“Have you ever tasted skin? Sink your teeth in!”) and ends with the nonsensical funeral dirge of “Non-Zero Possibility.” Over the course of Relationship of Command’s ten tracks, the album grabs you by the lapel, headbutts you straight into submission, drags your limp body along the dance floor, and never once loosens its grip. I may owe my musical life to Relationship of Command.

Beginning December 21 through December 25, we’ll be posting Top 10 Albums of 2009 lists as determined by Loud Loop Press editors and contributors. Then beginning December 28 through January 1, we’ll up the ante by posting Top 10 Albums of 2000-2009 lists once again determined by our esteemed writers. Today, contributor Audrey Leon leaves us in shock and awe with her list for the Top 10 albums of 2009.

1. …And You Will Know us by the Trail of Dead – The Century of Self
For many years after the release of Trail of Dead’s brilliant 2002 album Source Tags and Codes it seemed as though the band was on a downward spiral. Long-time bassist Neil Busch left in 2004 and inner-band strife began seeping into live shows. After breaking away from Interscope Records and relocating from Austin, Texas, to Brooklyn, N.Y., the members of …And You Will Know Us by The Trail of Dead put the drama behind them to create its sixth album The Century of Self. The Century of Self is by far Trail of Dead’s most luscious and grandiose album since Source Tags and Codes. From epic rock anthems that quickly flourish from loud to quiet to its softer piano-driven ballads, this Texas sextet romances audiences with its manic energy. How can you not love lyrics such as, “I heard the voice of God coming in the music / And I felt like Satan” from “Bells of Creation.” From the high energy rocker “Isis Unveiled” to the deeply introspective “Pictures of an Only Child,” The Century of Self is a moving piece of orchestral perfection that washes over the listener and leaves him/her gasping for breath.

2. Metric – Fantasies
Any band in Metric’s position would be content to build an empire upon a foundation of decent dance rock tunes, but after four albums Metric strives to grow and discover new-found levels of depth that lay previously undiscovered. Fantasies boasts slicker production values along with Metric’s signature new-wave pop sensibilities. Yet the real growth on Fantasies comes from frontwoman Emily Haines. After releasing her ultra-personal 2006 solo album Knives Don’t Have Your Back, Haines appears more comfortable with penning honest and introspective lyrics this time around. The first track on Fantasies, “Help I’m Alive,” lays it all out on the table for Haines, “They’re gonna eat me alive/If I stumble.” It’s do or die for Haines and the lyrics on Fantasies provide a window into Haines’ soul. She’s cynical (“Sick Muse”), but hopeful (“Gimme Sympathy”) and definitely not suicidal (“Satellite Mind”). From beginning to end, Fantasies’ mix of bass-heavy rockers, keyboard-driven ballads and dance pop numbers grab the listener’s attention and refuse to be ignored.

3. Mirah – (A)spera
Singer-songwriter Mirah Yom Tov Zeitlyn possesses great skill in crafting angelic pop melodies and pairing them with lyrics so universal that anyone can relate. Working with multiple producers including longtime collaborator Phil Everum (Microphones/Mount Eerie), Mirah created each song on (A)spera to stand on its own.. No two songs follow the same simple acoustic guitar plucking of most singer-songwriters. “County of the Future” possesses a bouncy Latin soul while “The Forest” turns on the electricity for its horn-heavy, rock guitar-infused Mediterranean rhythms. Mirah creates a different mood for each track almost as if she was designing a mix tape for those suffering through the varied emotions that come from dealing with loss. In album opener “Generosity” Mirah croons over a flurry of violins that she “won’t give more” despite a backing chorus demanding she do otherwise. “Shells,” while one of the most simplistic numbers on the album, is one of the most beautiful. “Shells” features a guitar that is as light as air with vocal melodies to match.

4. The Prairie Cartel – Where Did All My People Go
The Prairie Cartel’s debut album Where Did All My People Go takes the listener on a 78-minute auditory roller coaster ride of fast-paced dance punk and slower synth-infused rock compositions. Featuring Chicagoans Scott Lucas, Blake Smith and Mike Willison, Where Did All My People Go is packed full of electronic bells and whistles, heavy driving bass lines, and fuzzed-out, distortion rock guitars. The Prairie Cartel take full advantage of having two singers by having tracks that feature either piercing screams (courtesy of Lucas) or “sultry sleaze” (courtesy of Smith). From the sexy, electro-rock stylings of “Suitcase Pimp” to the feedback-heavy “Lost All Track of Time” the Prairie Cartel’s debut is a competent and stellar output that is destined for repeat play.

5. The Flaming Lips – Embryonic
The happy-go-lucky psychedelic Flaming Lips of Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots is gone. A more dark and brooding experimental sound has taken its place on the Flaming Lips’ twelfth album Embryonic. Choosing an apt moniker for this new collection, this is the Flaming Lips going back to square one in order to break new ground. Embryonic also serves as the theme seeing how most of the songs were approached with an element of childish wonder. The Karen O-assisted “I Can Be A Frog” could double as a Sesame Street segment on acid featuring Elmo. From the excellent, fuzzed-out and distorted sound of ‘Worm Mountain” to the throbbing menace of “See the Leaves,” Embryonic emerges as the perfect record to sit back and let your mind wander as Wayne Coyne and crew serve as tour guides down the murky waters of Embryonic fluid.

6. Sonic Youth – The Eternal
Most bands haven’t released five albums let alone 16 good ones and they certainly don’t stay on a major label for nearly 20 years. But Sonic Youth isn’t most bands. Sonic Youth returned in 2009 with a new label, Matador, new bassist (Mark Ibold, ex-Pavement), and new material. The Eternal is classic Sonic Youth. The album begins with the fast-paced distortion rocker “Sacred Trickster” that could have easily appeared on earlier Sonic Youth releases such as 1992’s Dirty and sets the stage for what is to come, a mix of noise-heavy rockers such as “Calming the Snake” and groovy, lo-fi jams such as the Lee Renaldo-helmed “What We Know” and “Walking Blue.” No Sonic Youth album would be complete without Kim Gordon’s sexy, breathy vocals transforming from whispered screams to moans (“Massage the History”), especially when paired with backing groans from Thurston Moore (“Anti-Orgasm”). After 16 albums, The Eternal proves that Sonic Youth can compete with the kids today and even show them a thing or two.

7. The Lonely Island – Incredibad
Musical comedy is a genre that doesn’t get much respect. The members of the Lonely Island may be better known for their day jobs at Saturday Night Live than for their musical chops. After the overnight success of “Lazy Sunday” and “Dick in a Box” on SNL, the Berkeley, Calif., trio of Andy Samberg, Jorma “The Sensitive One” Taccone and Akiva Schaffer embarked on a mission to create an musical album that was not only funny but surprisingly catchy. If you let the ridiculous lyrics slide, Incredibad could stand on its own as a decent hip-hop album with some tracks – “Jizz in my Pants,” “Space Olympics” and “Shrooms” – serving as electronica-laced interludes. Like any hip-hop album, Incredibad is chock full of famous guest stars including the king of auto-tune, T-Pain, on the Grammy-nominated single “I”m on a Boat,” Julian Casablancas on “Boombox” and Nora Jones on “Dreamgirl.” Incredibad will have you both raising the roof and giggling out of its absurdity.

8. Cursive – Mama, I’m Swollen
“I’m at my best when I’m at my worst,” Cursive frontman Tim Kasher reassures listeners on the song “From the Hips” from Cursive’s sixth album Mama, I’m Swollen. Perpetually skeptical about love and religion and all things in between, Mama, I’m Swollen is classic Cursive in the sense that Kasher will always have a clever comment on these subjects. Somehow after six albums, Kasher’s material doesn’t feel like well-worn territory. The first track on Mama, I’m Swollen, “In the Now,” sets a frantic hard-rock pace for the record with Kasher repeating the lyrics “Don’t want to live in the now / Don’t want to know what I know.” Kasher and co. delves into country-fried rock territory on “Caveman,” proclaiming he’s no father figure nor “no Dapper Dan.” Mama, I’m Swollen is Cursive at Cursive’s non-believing, self-deprecating best.

9. Starlight Mints – Change Remains
The Flaming Lips weren’t the only Oklahomans to take their brand of upbeat psychedelic pop music in a darker direction in 2009 and make it work. The Starlight Mints experimented with their sound by incorporating 1980s synth-pop, disco and funk on their fifth album Change Remains. The album begins with the haunting drum-centric instrumental “Coffins ‘R’ Us,” but eventually the Starlight Mints find their way back to their usual cutesy, bouncy selves by fifth track “Black Champagne.” By “Gazeretti” the Starlight Mints are indulging their every reggae pop fancy by choosing slow bass slaps and twinkling xylophone taps. The tracks “Paralyzed” and “Zoomba” emerge ahead of the pack because of their groovy, dominate bass lines and string sections.

10. Apostle of Hustle – Eats Darkness
Andrew Whiteman, guitarist for Toronto’s revolving door collective Broken Social Scene, uses his side project Apostle of Hustle to indulge his interest in making experimental pop music with a strong Cuban flair. Eats Darkness is a concept album about overcoming struggles in an imperfect world and Whiteman finds inspiration from everything from celebrities to a blackberry smartphone and even the least indie rock place possible, rapper Eazy-E. Album opener “Eazy Speaks” is named for him and yields one of the most interesting lines on the album, “I drink rain and piss out acid.” Eats Darkness was composed using samples, out-of-context voice recordings, voice distortion and twisted, ambient Latin rhythms to create a unique piece of performance art.